By Juan Carlos Rodriguez
Albuquerque Journal
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M — More and better mental health services for female juvenile delinquents has caused a sharp drop in the number who reoffend, Bernalillo County officials said Monday.
The recidivism rate for female detainees who received mental health care has decreased from 88 percent to 24 percent over the past three years, county Youth Services Center director Tom Swisstack said Monday at a news conference.
He said the drop is largely due to the center’s effort to focus on problems that affect girls, such as childhood sexual abuse.
County Commissioner Alan Armijo said the center discovered how better to treat girls by asking them.
"(Center officials) had to drive their counseling services for these youth on the issues that they were talking about, instead of us as adults presuming, ‘Well, this is what you need,’ ” Armijo said.
The center processes juveniles immediately after an arrest. Until their cases are decided by a judge, the center provides programming or incarceration, depending on the youth. It handles about 600 girls a year, about half of whom are treated for mental health issues.
Since 2000, the center has operated less like an adult correctional facility and has focused more on rehabilitation.
Armijo said when the county first bought into the idea of juvenile detention reform, Swisstack asked commissioners not to cut the center’s budget even though the number of inmates was dropping.
Money that was saved by closing holding pods was redirected to programs such as mental health, education and other services the center now provides besides incarceration.
The center’s budget from the county is about $1.2 million. It also receives $284,000 a year from the federal government and $125,000 from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, an organization dedicated to promoting children’s issues.
Copyright 2009 Albuquerque Journal